Grannycb

I'm just about ready to book the Veendam for May 23rd. It looks like the price has dropped for that date fairly recently. Wish there was a way to see the history of pricing on a particular cruise. It would make decision making much easier.

Our biggest concern is that it's too early in the season to go to Canada the end of May. We've gone to Alaska at the beginning of May so this should be warmer, right?

Does HAL have a cruise air program? Would they have a discount on flying two one way legs as some of the other cruise lines? Regular fares are less than we expected but would like to pick the best available.

We will be talking to our travel agent in the morning. He should be able to answer some of these questions. Any observations you have are appreciated.

What are the chances there will be inside or ocean view cabins available in May for a June sailing, either from Boston or Quebec City? Do people cancel close to final payment?

Thanks for your observations.

April 25, 2015 Oasis sailing was $810 for large ocean view balcony on deck 8. It was booked in June 2014. There was also some OBC offered.

I am looking at booking on Radiance of the Sea and have a few questions:

 

1. Looking at either leaving 5/15, 5/29, or 8/21. Is there a big difference in weather for these dates? How about wildlife? What would we be able to do/see differently leaving May vs. August?

 

2. Is paying the extra worth having a Balcony room vs. Ocean view?

 

3. Anyone who sailed on other cruise lines to Alaska? Is RC better/worse than NCL or Princess?

We've been on three Alaska cruises: Early May (1st ship in), mid May, and mid September. The May cruises were spectacular. The mountains were covered in snow, the glaciers were calving, and it was cold but so worth it. The September cruise was nice, but we were disappointed to see mostly dead or dying salmon in the streams. The weather was very wet and rainy then as well.

All three of our cruises were done with inside cabins. There was a lot of difference in the price. The extra savings went toward tours. We easily saved enough to take the White Pass RR to Emerald Lake, go on the Deadliest Catch tour, and a private whale watching tour. Alaska is so huge it's a shame to have a restricted balcony view. Even if we had a balcony we would still have been on the top deck to watch the scenery.

We found Princess did a good job, but I'm sure all the cruise lines will give you a wonderful experience.

Thanks for sharing your photos of Grandeur. Things have changed since we were last on her. Are the framed masks still in the halls?

Our dining times have changed a few times. If we end up with MTD, will we have to pay gratuities in advance? At this moment we are listed for early traditional dining.

There was a very nice mix of people from all over the world the two times we cruised in the Middle East. I'd say the majority of people were from Europe, North America, a few from South America and from Asia.

OP - We booked a catamaran through the ship tours. The catamaran picked us up a few feet from where the ship docked. It went along the shoreline, we saw where Dunn's River Falls enters the sea, and then went to an inlet for a swim. The sails went up on the return to the port and we flew across the water. That was so much fun. There was plenty of singing along to Bob Marley music and dancing on the deck. Free drinks, soft or otherwise, were served after our swim.

Do you have travel insurance? If the flight is covered under your plan there is fine print involved. Check what the allowable time from ship docking to plane departure. Usually, it has been either 5 or 6 hours on our plans.

Is it available on Oasis? Are there so many other things to do that we should give it a miss?

Even if it is a special occasion to us, we don't want to have anything special done for us by the ship.

Wonder if we are the only ones who feel like this? :confused:

LuLu

I'm with you on this one.

Yes! I would love to be on one of the first cruises going to Cuba. Hope some of the big lines go there, not just the smaller more expensive ones.

Grandeur balconies are usually around $1000 more than OV. We prefer the OV on Grandeur anyway. Other ships we go for the balcony depending on where they are going. Don't think I'd book a balcony for any NE/Canada cruise as we wouldn't use it that much to justify the cost. And, as another poster mentioned, there is usually lots of fog on this itinerary. The OV are nice.

I have a portable generator in the garage. When the power goes out I drag this big heavy and ugly thing out and crank it up. My point is when you need something it doesn't matter what it looks like. Be very glad you have it to use.

As for cruise lines, I wouldn't put one above another. Each one has it's strong and weak points. The top three reasons we sail on Carnival are: We live close to a port Carnival uses, the food is great, and Half Moon Cay is our favorite private island. We sail on RCCL, Celebrity and Princess for different reasons. I like them all.

If you book with a travel agent make sure there are no fees for changes. We currently have two cruises booked, one with RCCL and the other with a TA. It's been easier working with RCCL.

I am on Ruby this Saturday and my boarding pass says CHECK IN 12:30PM-3:00PM.

As you are Platinum you were free to ignore the "advice" of staggered boarding and go straight to the Platinum check-in line (as I will be).

We all wish check-in could be faster and smoother, but it sounds like you were onboard right at or even slightly before 12:30, so assuming your boarding pass read as mine your wait time was no more than should be expected.

Just curious, did your documents list progressive embarkation?

We were on the Nov. 3rd cruise on Ruby. Once inside the terminal a lady was standing guard. She was stopping Priority boarding people unless they were on Aloha or Baja decks. Luckily we were on Aloha and were able to proceed once we proved to her we were within our time to check in, on the proper deck, and had our health forms completed and reviewed. Other people were told there was no Elite lounge. That was incorrect as we were in it until 12:15 when we boarded. We went straight to the MDR which was listed in the Patter as open for lunch until 1:30. Several crew members told us there was no dining room open. They were wrong. Checkin was a huge mess for most people. The explanation we heard was the Regal Princess was in Ruby's normal terminal. Also, not enough agents were available. Whatever the reasons, Princess needs to work with the terminal employees to get things running smoother.

I don't see any of the classic beauty theme in the pictures posted. Did all the nudes go away?

I'd suggest you call customer service and ask for a supervisor. Many times asking the right question nicely to the right person fixes the problem quickly.

Great outcome for you!

We had our own freak out moment. I checked our reservation for Oasis in April. It was booked in June during the first week of the BOGOHO sale. There on the account was a notation that we owed another $250. What? We already paid the deposit and final payment isn't due yet. We called and were told that yes, we were late in paying our additional $250. It was due four days after we booked. This sounds all wrong to me. In the long run it doesn't matter as the total cost is the same. It's just a little unsettling to see a payment was expected so soon after booking. What's with IT that things like this happen?

She's the worst, broken down, dirty ship in the fleet....stay away! :D

Ouch!!!

That's hard to believe based on friend's reviews of the ship on recent sailings.

I have to laugh at this thread since we've thus far completed 118 cruises with many different lines. Only 6 with HAL, but we're coming back in December. Yes it's nice to get extra perks, but after 75 Princess cruises, I'm bored. I am now on a mission to try every ship on certain lines (some lines are not included; one that starts with a C and has five letters) that we've never cruised. Last time on Westerdam was 1992, so you think 22 years is time enough to try again? :D

Ha Ha! Our last cruise on HAL was in the 1990's too, on the old Westerdam. We are looking to give HAL another try in the spring. It'd be nice to see some new shows and have different menus. Loyalty is nice on the other four lines we cruise, but being the new kid is also pretty special. It's fine to go to the loyalty programs and wear pins if that's your thing. Glad they make people happy.

My question about DD is how far out can reservations be booked? I keep checking for our April cruise.

Harv and Marv in Juneau took us out to see whales and eagles. Loved the excursion and will do it again when we go back to Alaska. There were so many whales we lost count.

We have had very good luck booking guarantee. Sometimes we don't know our cabin number until we get to the ship. Most of the time it's an upgrade within a grade, but sometimes it's a two or three category upgrade. It seems the longer you wait for an assignment the better the cabin

We had Any Time Dining and never had a wait. We liked going between 5:30 and 6:00. I can't answer for times later than that. We skipped dessert and coffee all but one night. The early meal time allowed us to see two different shows each night.